US Kills 60 Al-Shabaab In Deadliest Attacks On The Somali Militants, But The Cycle Of Violence Continues

A FORTNIGHT ago US forces launched their deadliest attack in nearly a year on Somalia’s al-Shabaab, killing 60 of the militant groups members, US Africa Command (Africom) reported last Tuesday.

Last November, the US said another significant strike against the group killed 100 of its fighters. Al-Shabaab has lost large swathes of territory to the Somali army this year, bolstered by US and African Union peacekeeping troops, AMISOM.

Africom said no civilians were killed or wounded in the air attack, near the al-Shabaab-controlled town of Harardhere in Mudug region. Yet the ongoing cycle of violence has taken a devastating toll on many communities. Among them are current and former child soldiers, who are often forcibly recruited at age eight or nine.